The Gentlewoman's Guide to Calm in a Natural Disaster
Hardback
Written from experience, The Gentlewoman’s Guide to Calm in a Natural Disaster offers clear, steady systems for living well before, during, and after disruption. It’s a book for those who prefer order to alarm, preparation to panic, and dignity in the midst of difficulty — available as a hardcover keepsake, a lightweight paperback, or a downloadable edition for travel
Paperback
Epub for e-readers
Contents
1 — How to Use This Book
3 — Lessons from Lismore
15 — Planning and Thinking
21 — Part I: Building Your Systems
22 — Order from Chaos
29 — Calm
45 — When You Are Alone
50 — Companion Animals
52 — Emotional Preparedness and Decision Rules
56 — Part II: More Than a Well Stocked Pantry
57 — Food
57 — Building a pantry that survives the disaster
61 — Preservation methods
68 — Resilient Power
72 — Livestock and Garden
72 -- Livestock
77 -- Garden
85 — Medical and Mobility
87 — Part III: Hazards
88 — Fire
95 — Flood
101 — Storms
106 — Blackouts
108 — About generators
109 — Storing volatile fuels
121 — Part IV: Evacuation and Recovery
122 — Evacuation With Dignity
125 — Recovery and Reputation
128 — Supplies That Made Sense (Practical, Not Always Cheap)
128 — Reference Books
129 — Wicking Pots
132 — Afterword
135 — Trademark Notice
136 — About the Author
The Gentlewoman's Companion to Calm in a Natural Disaster
A practical partner to the Guide.
The Gentlewoman’s Companion to Calm in a Natural Disaster helps you turn preparation into a quiet, personal system. It includes structured checklists and notes pages for your own plans — designed to stay useful when everything else feels uncertain. Available as a printable edition. It’s a tool built for calm, order, and continuity.
Print at home
Contents
Emergency Contacts
Evacuation Bag
Vehicle Contents
Equipment
Fuels
Perishables
Fabric care
Recharge schedule and batteries
Pantry
Packets
Tins
Jars
Bins
Buckets
Boxes
Personal items
Cleaning supplies
Sundry supplies
Power
RechargeableBatteries and chargers
Solar panels and power sources
Cords and adaptors
Animals
Garden
January
February
March
April
May
June
July
August
September
October
November
December
Mobility
Disaster tasks
Fire
Flood
Storms
Blackouts
Fuels
Generators
Notes
About the Author
Suzanne Cronin brings 30 years of nursing experience and firsthand knowledge of the Lismore floods to her writing about disaster preparedness.
Her approach is practical: understand what you depend on each day, prepare for disruptions, and build systems you can manage under pressure.
The Gentlewoman’s Guide to Calm in a Natural Disaster and its spiral-bound Companion help readers turn those preparations into plans, routines and useful records.
Suzanne lives on the New South Wales coast with her Havanese dog, Pippin.
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Last updated: 29 October 2026
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